


Shadow of the Blight

by KanraTheTeddyB3ar



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: AND FOR ONCE I PLAN TO NOT FUCK IT UP, F/M, Modern Girl in Thedas, Mostly Canon Compliant, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, or Both, or have people rioting, this is either gonna be real good, though i can't guarantee accuracy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-06-21 11:58:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15557226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KanraTheTeddyB3ar/pseuds/KanraTheTeddyB3ar
Summary: Your typical Modern Girl in Thedas fic, I suppose? Except she's in Lothering. And it's been 4 years after the Blight. Did I mention she's in Lothering?





	1. Essential Set Up

**Author's Note:**

> I was gonna wait to finish the first chapter, and it's nearly done, so I just really wanted to get this out the way. The relationship tags/additional tags will be updated as I go, and the ones I have up there now will be brought up at a later date. So don't think that I'm just putting them there to garner readers, they're there for a reason.
> 
> Also, I must once again reiterate that this story is entirely separate from the Greensleeves Universe. I might try to leave an easter egg or two referencing it, but no promises on that.

There’s going to be quite a lot of characters, both major and minor, prevalent throughout the story. This chapter is to basically introduce them. I’ll also point out some key locations that may end up being visited within the story. A lot of information I get will be from the Dragon Age wiki, so bare with me if I fuck up some lore.

**MAJOR CHARACTERS**

_ Delilah Buck  _ \- A woman with eyes as dark as her hair, Delilah does reenactments at a local park with a re-constructed town, while also working a part time job at a gas station. She is described best as stubborn, sweet, kind, cruel - a myriad of clashing descriptors, depending entirely on the person and their interactions that day. Though she once dreamed of entering the world of Thedas, she gave up that dream the day she applied for the gas station job, a staunch slap in the face from reality. Doesn’t explain the vivid dreams that still haunt her steps…

_ Huvin  _ \- A city elf with great aspirations to become a Grey Warden - essentially, a Grey Warden stan. A well meaning but ofttimes wee bit obnoxious individual, Huvin has made himself the tag-a-long companion of Senior Grey Warden, who set off to Lothering to officially judge if the land was truly Tainted at the request of Elder Miriam.

_ Valentin Koller  _ \- A Senior Grey Warden, originally from Nevarra. Tasked with judging the land around Lothering, Valentin planned to head there and back alone. What he didn’t count on was the overly exuberant elf that happily heaped himself upon him.

_ Caterina Garrido-Koller  _ \- Valentin’s rather disgruntled Rivaini wife, Caterina simply wants her husband to come home and stay home. 

**MINOR CHARACTERS**

_ Gina Buck nee Pollard  _ \- Delilah’s mother, a recent divorcee. The stalwart suburban mom, she never quite understood her daughter’s passion for her reenactment job. That is, until her daughter disappears, and she finds herself hanging around the rebuilt park town.

_ Stephen Duke  _ \- The curator for the park town. He was extremely close with Delilah, and would sometimes try to set her up with other employees in the park.

_ Valothra Surana  _ \- The Hero of Ferelden and Warden Commander of Ferelden’s Grey Wardens. 

**KEY LOCATIONS**

  * Lothering
  * Redcliffe Village
  * Crestwood
  * Pilgrim’s Path
  * City of Amaranthine
  * Vigil’s Keep
  * Turnoble Estate
  * Highever
  * Denerim




	2. 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if this counts as a double post, but whateves, I finished the first chapter. Rest assured, Delilah will wake up in Lothering in Chapter 2.

Sprawling fields as far as the eye could see. Bits of rocky outcroppings. It was exactly what she imagined the Bannorn looked like, once upon a time. She could see the buzzing bees, the early signs of growth. It was beautiful.

Then, a shift happened.

The fields died, the ground itself turning an ashen gray. Instead of fields, dilapidated houses stood. Smoke tinged with green rose all around, and she choked with each breath.  _ Blight… _

**‘...MY BABY DON’T MESS AROUND BECAUSE SHE LOVES ME SO AND THIS I KNOW FO SHOOOOOOOO’**

Delilah LeAnn Buck near fell out of her bed as  _ Hey Ya!  _ came blaring out of her phone. With a groan, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, tapping the dismiss option. For the umpteenth time, she questioned why she made  _ that  _ song her alarm song.

Oh yeah. Cause a rude awakening is the only way to make her get out of bed in the mornings.

Sighing out her nose, she sits up, legs already moving towards the side of her bed. She shakes her head once, to rid herself of her dreams. Vivid, as usual. The third one this week. She stands, heading into the bathroom to brush her teeth and roll on some deodorant. Not wanting to brush her hair, she pulls it up into a messy bun - or an attempt at a messy bun - and heads over to her closet. A pair of athletic capris and a sports bra make up her outfit. Throw in some socks and a pair of tennis shoes, and it’s out the door.

The sound of bird song blared through her headphones as she jogged around the block her apartment building was situated on. She may see nothing but concrete in the early morning light - and already the sidewalks were starting to crowd with people - but that didn’t mean she had to hear it. Not yet.

She rolled her eyes as she walked down the hall towards her apartment door, her neighbor standing outside it. Without saying a word, she unlocked her door, entered her apartment, and shut the door, audibly locking it. She’d stopped caring about her neighbor’s squabbles with their… boyfriend? Girlfriend? Specific other? She forgot the term they used.

_ Let ‘em stay once, and it’s one time too many. _

* * *

In another realm, a Grey Warden road along what remained of the Imperial Highway towards Lothering. He was about a day out from Redcliffe, where he had stopped to rest and resupply. Valentin Koller was a man of mayhaps 40 years, with crows feet and laugh lines. His once blonde hair had greyed, with brown eyes ever wandering the road. The Blight was 4 years past, but that didn’t mean that Darkspawn couldn’t be about. He knew that from his experiences fighting them in Nevarra, though Darkspawn sightings were  _ much  _ rarer than here in Ferelden.

Now, if only he could be rid of his little headache.

Behind him, on an ever patient Fereldan Forder, was a young elf named Huvin. The young man had been absolutely over the moon upon their meeting in Redcliffe. Valentin had let him tag along for now, since he was only heading to Lothering to judge the land. Nothing too dangerous, really. And who knows, the lad may prove useful.

Huvin nattered on in the background as they reached the peak of a hill. Below lay Lothering, and just outside it a few tents were pitched. A slight wind blew, and carried with it a tint of the Blight. Or perhaps that was just his imagination?

Somehow, it made his mind turn back towards Amaranthine. Towards his beloved Catarina. Warden Commander Surana’s request had been rather abrupt, and he hadn’t much time to say farewell. He was certain she’d been quite the sight when she awoke after he left. Sure, he should have told her where he was headed, save himself the headache. But he knew his wife, and knew he’d have been convinced to stay home.

And what could he say? Caterina was the most cunning Rivaini woman he’d met yet.


	3. 2

For what felt like the umpteenth time, Delilah explained just how she kept so cool despite the layers to her costume. Being a reenactor felt like thankless work sometimes, and she can’t even post a FAQ sheet outside the wood door to the schoolhouse that she was stationed in. There were questions about the schoolhouse, yes. Lessons that she offered for the visiting children. But to be asked,  _ day in and day out _ , how she standed the heat was… well, intolerable.

She huffed, turning to the chalkboard behind her to erase the lesson she’d given the last group. Poor kids had been run ragged with multiplication with double digits. A chuckle, clearly Stephen’s, sounded behind her.

“I don’t know how you do it, Stephen,” She said, not taking her eyes off the board. “Remind my why I can’t post a FAQ sheet outside the door again?”

“People won’t read it,” Was his reply. “And the teenagers will probably tear it down.”

_ Not all teenagers _ , she thought, cause she knew that there would be teens that complained. Especially the guilty ones. It’s always the guilty that profess innocence the loudest.

“Chin up, ‘Lilah,” He says, clearing his throat. “This is a better turnout than I was expecting, given the weather.”

As if on cue, thunder rumbled in the distance. Delilah and Stephen looked out the window to see lightning bolt across the horizon. It was rare for so many people to show up with inclement weather. Perhaps the weather was what had Delilah in such a mood. Perhaps it was something else.

As Stephen exited the schoolhouse, Delilah grabbed the other eraser, heading out onto the schoolhouse porch. It was a meager thing, but what mattered was that it was covered, a rare thing. Holding the erasers away from her, Delilah clapped them together. At first, she had found the the task physically draining, since she had to keep at it until not a lick of dust fluttered out. Now it was just another task.

A task she hated, but a task nonetheless.

\---

Elder Miriam was a sturdy woman, Valentin could say that much. And he was thankful that she had distracted his headache, that he might do his job in peace. He started his survey on the outskirts of Lothering, looping inward. If one paid attention, wafts of what seemed black smoke wafted out from dead grass. Taking a moment to glance the sky, Valentin didn’t see any kind of birds flying overhead. Not even crows. 

The further back towards the center of the village he got, the more he knew that Lothering was Blighted. It would be years before the people could  _ consider _ rebuilding. Now to summon the strength to tell Elder Miriam the news. He could near see her crestfallen expression-

“GREY WARDEN!” He hears Huvin calling, racing towards him. He notices the odd bundle that the elf carries, and it almost looked too heavy for him to carry. He had heard Huvin mention that he worked as some kind of laborer, amidst all the other drivel.

“I have already told you to call me Warden Koller,” He reprimands the boy, though his eyes dart to the bundle in his arms. He’d never seen such odd cloth before. Then, it hits him.

Huvin is carrying a _human_ _woman_. One that looked so otherworldly he’d think she was some demon. He reaches out, one hand cradling the back of the woman’s head, brushing dark hair out of her face. A groan spills out, and he sees her eyelids flutter for a moment.

“Take her to Elder Miriam, and fast.” An order, the elf nods and darts back to the camp. So much for a short trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For a while I didn't think this was gonna be posted. But, since I've recently put my Destiny fanfic on semi hiatus, my upload times should be more frequent.


	4. 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .... Guess who got to writing more than one fanfic and near lost inspiration for this one. THIS FUCKING GAL, EYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

A groan emanated from a makeshift medic tent. Outside, Valentin and Elder Miriam halted their conversation. Sending the other a wary look, the two entered the tent. The young woman was sitting on her cot, still in her odd clothing, holding her head in her hands. She looks up as the tent flap falls back into place. The light from the lamp beside her highlights her features drastically, truly making her look like quite a witch. The blackest eyes either had ever seen studied them, equally black hair falling straight to her shoulders.

She seems to go to say something, but instead claps her hands against her lips. Elder Miriam grabs a freshly emptied chamber pot hidden in the corner and places it under the woman’s chin, in which she empties her stomach. Valentin frowns as the woman coughs, reaching within his armor to offer his handkerchief. She waves a hand in refusal, instead wiping her mouth with the edges of what he assumes is meant to be some kind of tunic.  
She clears her throat, more so than is needed, before speaking. “Where the fuck am I?”

Elder Miriam looks appalled, but Valentin snorts, despite himself. Such language was the norm in Vigil’s Keep most days, so he didn’t find it nearly as eyebrow raising as Elder Miriam seemed to think it. Clearing his throat, he says “You’re in Lothering, girl. And not in much of a position to be asking questions.”

The woman rolls her eyes, stating, “I have a name, y’know. Delilah.”

“I am Elder Miriam. I’ll be looking after ya,” Elder Miriam finally speaks. She reaches out for a stool and slides it closer to her, before slowly sitting. “Or looking after ya until the guards from Redcliffe come. Then it’ll be up to the Arl what happens with ya.”

Before the woman - Delilah - can say another word, a man enters the tent. He hands a letter to Elder Miriam, then leaves. Valentin notes the man eyes Delilah a little too closely.

“I shall leave you ladies be. I’ve still got my inspection to complete,” Valentin says with a wave. He’s not even neared the bridge when Huvin near accosts him.

“Is she up? Is she well? Is she a witch?” The elf near bounces, nattering off a myriad of questions. Valentin does his best to not sock him.

“Aye, she’s up, and seems well enough. As for being a witch…” Valentin hums to himself. Did this Delilah woman seem to be a witch? He couldn’t say for sure. He was a Grey Warden, after all, not a Templar. Most of the mages he met in the Order are only distinguishable by the fact they carry their staffs with them. “Well, I’m no Templar. And neither are you, boy. Any other questions you may as well leave in the Maker’s hands.”

Huvin seems rather unhappy with that, but Valentin just continues on, wandering about the village. Everywhere he walks, he is acutely aware of the lack of birds. The dirt feels more like ash underfoot. He doesn’t need to wander any further, nor even into any of the houses, to know. Lothering and its surrounding lands were Blight-sick, extremely so. The news would not be easy to break. He knew that Elder Miriam and her people had made entire lives here, and giving up their land and praying that there was room in other places would not be an easy feat.

But still, it was news he had to break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter was a little short, but eh. If any of ya'll got theories a-brewing, sound off below!


End file.
